PROTECTION GUIDES

Review your existing protection

Life moves on. A review checks that the cover you already have still does the job you need it to.

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The short answer

A protection review checks whether your existing life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection still match your family, mortgage, job and budget. It looks for gaps where you are under-protected and overlaps where you may be paying twice.

A review does not mean replacing your policies. Existing cover often has valuable terms worth keeping, and adding a new policy alongside can be the better answer.

Why cover can stop fitting

Protection is usually arranged around your circumstances at the time you buy it. Those circumstances change, but the policy does not change with them. Common triggers for a review include:

•Family: a new partner, a baby, separation, or children becoming independent.
•Mortgage: moving home, borrowing more, extending the term or switching to interest-only.
•Job: a pay rise, becoming self-employed, or a change in sick pay.
•Budget: premiums becoming harder to afford, or room to improve your cover.
•Employee benefits: joining or leaving an employer that provides death-in-service or group income protection.

Employer benefits deserve particular attention. Death-in-service and group income protection usually stop when you leave the employer, so cover that seemed unnecessary while you were there may be needed later.

Looking for gaps and overlaps

A gap is a risk your household could not manage without cover: a mortgage larger than your life cover, a policy that ends before the mortgage does, or no protection for income if you could not work.

An overlap is where two arrangements target the same need. For example, personal cover bought while you had no work benefits may now duplicate what your employer provides, or two policies may both be aimed at the same mortgage. Overlap is not always a problem, but it is worth knowing it is there. Our guide to combining life, critical illness and income protection looks at how different policies fit together.

Existing terms can be valuable

Before changing anything, it is worth understanding what your current cover gives you:

•A policy taken out when you were younger or healthier was priced on that basis, whereas a new one is priced on your age today
•Guaranteed premiums stay the same for the term, subject to the policy terms, while reviewable ones can rise
•Some older policies have definitions or benefits that compare well with newer ones, and some do not
•If your health has changed since you applied, a new policy may carry higher premiums or exclusions

Worth knowing

Replacing a policy is not always appropriate, and a review does not automatically lead to replacement. Never cancel an existing policy until a replacement has been accepted and is in force.

Who a review suits, and when it may not be needed

Who it can suit

•Anyone whose family, mortgage or job has changed since the cover was arranged
•People relying on work benefits who are changing, or thinking of changing, employer
•Anyone unsure what their existing policies actually cover
•People whose premiums have become difficult to afford

When it may not be needed

•Your cover was arranged recently and nothing significant has changed
•You have already checked your policies against your current mortgage, income and family
•You no longer have anyone depending on you and no debts you want covered

Adding to your cover rather than replacing it

If your needs have grown, a new policy alongside the existing one is often the simplest route. You keep the terms you already have and add only the extra cover you need, for the term you need it. Some policies also let you increase cover after certain life events without further medical questions, within limits set by the policy.

Where cover is too high or no longer needed, reducing it may be possible, depending on the insurer. When affordability is the concern, reducing cover can be better than cancelling altogether.

If your health has changed and you are considering new cover, our guide to life insurance with pre-existing conditions explains how insurers may assess an application.

Next steps

Gather your policy schedules, any recent premium letters and details of your employee benefits. Note what has changed since each policy started. With that, we can compare what you have with what you need, and explain whether keeping, adding to or, in some cases, replacing cover makes sense.

A recent case

Real examples of cover we have recently arranged. Customer details are anonymised.

Life insurance review

Extending life cover while cutting the premium by 43%

The situation

A customer asked us to review her life insurance policy, which provided £155,000 of cover until age 80 for £98 a month.

What we recommended

•A replacement policy with another insurer, keeping the £155,000 cover amount and extending the term to age 90. The new policy also included additional benefits.
•We discussed income protection and critical illness cover as well, but she chose to prioritise reducing her monthly spending at that time.

The outcome

The new premium is £56 a month: a saving of £42 a month, or £504 a year, which is approximately 43% of the previous premium, with cover lasting ten years longer.

This was an individual outcome. Whether replacing existing cover is suitable, and what it costs, depends on your circumstances and the terms of both policies. An existing policy should not be cancelled until its replacement is in force.

Request a protection review

Send us details of your existing policies and any work benefits, and we will check them against your current circumstances. We will tell you if your cover still fits, and only suggest changes where they would help. There is no fee for our advice.

CALL 02382 000825 TALK TO US ABOUT YOUR PROTECTION

How CoverLife can help

CoverLife Insurance gives personalised protection advice, with a dedicated adviser for your application and ongoing support. We have access to a panel of 15 protection insurers, with availability varying by product and circumstances, and we compare benefits and terms alongside price. We also help with policy reviews and with applications involving medical conditions, unusual occupations or hazardous hobbies.

We charge no advice or arrangement fee; we receive commission from the insurer. CoverLife Insurance is a trading name of CoverTrade Risk Management Ltd, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, firm reference number 1020148. More about CoverLife

Related guides

The questions people usually ask next.

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Common questions

How often should I review my protection?+

There is no fixed rule, but it is sensible to look again whenever something significant changes, such as moving home, remortgaging, having a child, changing job or separating. If nothing has changed, a check every few years helps make sure the cover still fits.

Does a review mean I will be asked to replace my policy?+

No. A review is a check that your cover still matches your needs. Often the right outcome is to keep what you have, or to add a new policy alongside it. Replacement is only worth considering where it would genuinely leave you better off.

Should I cancel my old policy once I have applied for a new one?+

No. Keep your existing policy in force until the new one has been accepted and has started. If the new application is postponed, declined or accepted on different terms, you could otherwise be left without cover.

What happens to my work benefits if I change job?+

Employer benefits such as death-in-service and group income protection usually stop when you leave that employer. A new employer may offer different benefits, or none. It is worth checking what you would have before relying on work cover in place of your own.

My health has changed since I took out my policy. Does that matter?+

Your existing policy is normally based on the information you gave when you applied, so a later change in health does not usually affect it. A new policy would be assessed on your health now, which could mean higher premiums or exclusions. That is one reason existing cover can be valuable.